Post Category Workplaces

In March 2020, the Harvard Healthy Buildings Program completed data collection for the Global CogFx study, an international, one-year study of indoor environmental quality and office worker health and productivity. This week, the first of several papers analyzing data from the Global CogFx study was published.  This first paper evaluated how building operations impacted indoor fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations […]

Every day, we are exposed to mixtures of hundreds of chemicals that are present in the materials and products that surround us in our buildings (Table 1). For example, semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) build up in indoor dust and air and get into our bodies through ingestion, breathing, and direct skin contact. Typical office workers spend about […]

The Global CogFx study, a research project conducted among 302 office workers in six countries (China, India, Mexico, Thailand, the UK and the US) aims to understand the effects of indoor air pollution on cognitive performance. Our paper published today shows the significant acute effects of PM2.5 and ventilation on cognitive test performance. These findings add […]

Our new study, led by Anna Young with the Harvard Healthy Buildings program and colleagues in the Duke Stapleton Lab, found that office workers are commonly exposed to hormone-disrupting chemical mixtures. Once hormone-disrupting chemicals enter our bodies, they can be mistaken for natural hormones like estrogen and testosterone, thereby preventing our actual hormones from doing their […]

The pandemic abruptly disrupted workplaces overnight, transforming many homes into offices. Here are the newest takeaways from our Home/Work study. To examine the role environmental factors in the home play on the cognitive function of remote workers, our team designed a study led by Dr. Anna Young that studied 206 office workers who worked in remote or […]

Indoor air quality (IAQ) is a fundamental yet frequently underestimated aspect of public health, especially highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic. This often-neglected facet impacts health, productivity, and learning. In an article published in SCIENCE, 40+ international experts, including Professor Joseph Allen, Director of Harvard’s Healthy Buildings program, call for national IAQ standards and provide a roadmap for healthier […]